Editing Colleen McCullough (section)

==Controversies==

Following the publication of ''The Ladies of Missalonghi'' in 1987, McCullough was accused of having plagiarised ''[[The Blue Castle]]'', a 1926 novel by [[L. M. Montgomery]].<ref name="Whitlock">{{cite journal|last1=Whitlock|first1=Gillian|title=Double Trouble: One or Two Women?|journal=[[Meanjin]]|date=Summer 2010|volume=69|issue=4|pages=83–89|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/49516607|issn=0025-6293}}</ref><ref name="DeMarr">{{cite book|last1=DeMarr|first1=Mary Jean|title=Colleen McCullough: A Critical Companion|date=1996|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|isbn=9780313294990|pages=141–146|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R5tt3Id3yzgC&dq=plagiarism&pg=PA142|language=en}}</ref> McCullough responded that any similarities were due to [[cryptomnesia|subconscious recollection]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Wood|first1=Chris|last2=Grenard|first2=Philip|last3=MacAndrew|first3=Barbara|title=A Tale of Twin Spinsters|url=http://archive.macleans.ca/issue/19880215|work=[[Maclean's]]|date=15 February 1988|page=59}} {{subscription required}}</ref>

In an interview with ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' in November 2004 to promote ''Angel Puss'', McCullough said the men of [[Pitcairn Island]] that were [[2004 Pitcairn Islands sexual assault trial|convicted of sexual encounters with children]] should have been allowed to follow their "custom" and have sex with young girls. "The Poms have cracked the whip and it's an absolute disgrace. These are indigenous customs and should not be touched. These were the first people to inhabit Pitcairn Island, and they are racially unique." she said. "It's hypocritical, too. Does anybody object when Muslims follow their customs?"{{hsp}}<ref name=smh>[https://www.smh.com.au/world/pitcairn-men-were-following-custom-mccullough-20041116-gdk4fe.html "Pitcairn men were following custom: McCullough"], ''[[Sydney Morning Herald]]'', 16 November 2004; retrieved 25 February 2020.</ref> The comments generated stories at the time,<ref>[http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2004/11/17/2003211426 "Author of 'Thorn Birds' defends Pitcairn sex attacks"], ''[[Taipei Times]]'', 17 November 2004; retrieved 25 February 2020.</ref><ref>[https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/australasia-travel/australia/colleen-mccullough-to-undergo-brain-surgery-rv0c3ltcxcl "Colleen McCullough to undergo brain surgery"], ''[[The Times]]'', 29 November. 2009; retrieved 25 February 2020.</ref> and were mentioned in her obituaries.<ref name="GuardianOb"/>